In 1606 William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, wrote a play which would go down in history as the “cursed Scottish play” after numerous mishaps during production. It was written for his new patron, James I (James VI of Scotland), following the death of Queen Elizabeth. James was interested in witchcraft and Scotland, hence the themes in the play. Banquo is James's ancestor.

The play itself tells the story of a man, urged by his wife and foretold by prophecy, who commits regicidein order to gain powerand suffers its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy.

Shakespeare's source for the tragedy are the accounts of King Macbeth of Scotland, Macduff, and Duncan in Holinshed's Chronicles (1587), a history of England, Scotland and Ireland familiar to Shakespeare and his contemporaries. However, the story of Macbeth as told by Shakespeare bears little relation to real events in Scottish history, as Macbeth was an admired and able monarch.

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